To the Presiding Committee ofThe First Congress of Soviets of the Don Republic[1]

Rostov-on-Don

Written:April 13, 1918Published:First published in 1942 inLenin Miscellany XXXIV.

      Printed from the manuscript.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      2nd English Edition,

      Progress Publishers,1971,

      Moscow,Volume 42,

      pages88c-89a.Translated:Bernard IsaacsTranscription\Markup:D. WaltersPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive

      (2003).You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.•README

Withall my heart I greet the first Congress of Soviets of the Don
Republic.

Inparticular I heartily subscribe to the words of the resolution
concerning the necessity for carrying through tovictory the mounting struggle against the kulak elements of Cossackdom in
the Don region. These words contain an accurate definition of the tasks of
the revolution. This is the kind of struggle that now faces us throughout
Russia.

[1]TheFirst Congress of Soviets of the Don Republic, which pro-claimed
itself the supreme Soviet authority on the Don, was held on April 9-12,
1918. It was attended by 750 delegates. Lenin was elected honorary
chairman. The resolution referred to by Lenin was adopted on April 12 by an
overwhelming majority, the Mensneviks’ motion receiving only 2 votes. The
congress approved the Soviet Government’s peaceful policy and stressed in
the reso-lution that it regarded the Don Republic as part of the
R.S. F.S.R. and considered it its chief task to work for the rehabilitation
of the national economy and the creation of a Red Army. The congress
declared the working Cossacks’ readiness to defend Soviet power.